The present invention relates to motion seat systems and methods of implementing motion in seats.
Motion seat systems have been used in theme park rides such as Disney's Star Tours and Universal Studio's Back to the Future, in commercial movie theaters, in gaming environments, and in training centers (e.g., military, law enforcement, and flight schools) to produce the sensation one is immersed in the reality displayed on a screen by synchronizing the seat motion of the viewer to correspond to the displayed scenes.
Motion seat systems are adapted to receive motion signals that move seats to correspond (e.g., synchronize) to other signals (e.g., video and/or audio signals) that are perceived by person(s). For example, the motion seat system may synchronize seat motions with the displayed motions in a movie theater to simulate the forces one would experience seated in a vehicle in a chase scene where the vehicle races around a city street.
FIG. 1A shows that a motion signal can actuate forward and back pitch in the motion seat. The motion back simulates force pushing a person back if a vehicle suddenly accelerated while the motion forward simulates the vehicle suddenly braking.
FIG. 1B shows that a motion seat can be also rotated from side to side in a movement referred to as roll. Here the movement simulates the sideways force one would experience if a vehicle suddenly turned left or right. FIG. 1C shows a motion seat could also rotate horizontally about a vertical axis in a movement referred to as yaw. Although yaw simulates other forces a person might experience in the chase scene, it is less desired than pitch and roll, because yaw rotates a person away from the visual display which reduces the illusion of being in the displayed action plus requires great spacing between seats to avoid bumping moving seats together.